At the time of writing I am still recovering from a burst of patriotic fervour (and insanity!) that saw me up at 2am with most of our family to watch the All Whites’ historic one-all draw with Italy in the soccer World Cup.

Actually I really only got up because I’d woken when I heard our offspring heading for the family room en masse in the wee small hours for their rendezvous with the TV. Even our youngest daughter, Laura, who’s 14, went to bed early and set her alarm.

Like her older brothers and her dad, Laura is very much a sports fan and it wasn’t long before she found an article about the All Whites in which striker Rory Fallon, described as a devout and very public Christian, suggested that the All Whites may have had divine help gaining their first World Cup point when they drew with Slovakia.

The article went so far as to say that Fallon “almost portrayed the All Whites as the Band of God” and spoke about prayers before the game helping secure the outcome.

While I think it’s great that Fallon is happy to openly talk about his Christian faith, particularly to a secular media, I do have an issue with the whole “God is on our side” in sport.

Does God take sides? It could be a theological debate.

Technically, if it were a matter of God listening to the most prayers, Italy and some of the South American teams would be romping home, given their countries’ religious fervour and population.

Somehow I just can’t visualise God sitting up in Heaven deciding which team he’s going to bless with the most goals in each game.

But I could be wrong.

God may be an ardent sports follower and revel in helping his favourite teams score those winning goals.

Who knows, by the time you read this New Zealand may have won the World Cup. That really would be a miracle!

And then Rory Fallon certainly would have something to give thanks for.

– Fran Pardon